Rain and people poured into Tampa Monday. The convention gaveled in and then quickly recessed, but organizers insist tomorrow is a go.

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IN TRANSIT: Marco Rubio spent the day driving from Miami to Tampa. The Florida senator, speaking at the convention Thursday in primetime, went on Fox News about 7 a.m. Then he, his wife Jeanette, and the kids hopped in their van for the drive north. They hit some weather but still expected to arrive later Monday evening.

ISAAC LATEST—TAMPA DODGES A BULLET: “No widespread damage or flooding was reported. Only a few hundred people across the region reported power outages. Some streets closed — but only temporarily,” reports the Tampa Bay Times’ Kameel Stanley. “Students will head back to school today. Shelters will be closed. Courts and other government offices will reopen. But the threat isn't completely over. Authorities began warning people Monday morning to stay away from the beaches.” http://bit.ly/RSWFS0

UPDATED SCHEDULE: The convention sent out an 18-page schedule that they say is still subject to change. But the message is that everything will start up officially Tuesday. See the order of business here: http://bit.ly/TkHFHI.

MINORITY REPORT: A coalition of Ron Paul supporters and conservatives scurried Monday to force a floor fight that could overturn rules pushed through a convention committee last week by Mitt Romney surrogates. They need 28 signatures of the 112-member convention rules committee, or 25 percent, to issue “a minority report” challenging changes that will make it harder for insurgent candidates to succeed in future presidential elections. If they succeed after a Tuesday afternoon meeting, they could theoretically force a hearing by the full convention. Morton Blackwell, Virginia’s Republican national committeeman, was spotted leaving the security perimeter Monday so he could try and persuade the North Carolina delegation, staying in St. Petersburg, to join the cause. He’s been at every convention since 1964, and he marveled at how much easier it is to communicate than when was a delegate for Barry Goldwater.

POSTPONED: Some groups moved their parties earlier tonight because there are no speeches. Others decided to postpone. Purple Events and Jamestown Productions decided to reschedule two of their events, the California Delegates Reception and the Camp Freddy Wounded Warrior Family Benefit Concert, from Monday night to Tuesday night at the same time and the same location. To give you an idea of the logistical difficulties involved in this kind of juggling, a Tuesday reception for Virginia delegates was postponed and combined with the Wednesday Illinois delegate reception at the same venue. Both are now from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

SPLIT SCREEN? The storm heads toward New Orleans now, and some top TV talent will follow. CNN's "Starting Point," anchored by Soledad O'Brien, will be broadcast from there Tuesday. Anderson Cooper's broadcasts from there will be part of CNN's larger primetime coverage, anchored out of Tampa. Meanwhile, NBC's Lester Holt will be reporting from New Orleans, as will ABC News weather editor Sam Champion and Fox News anchor Shepard Smith. Dylan Byers: http://politi.co/OFnBA6.

REGRETS: The weather isn’t the only reason some won’t make it to the convention. A lot of Republicans facing tough races are staying home to campaign. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) is recovering from orthopedic hip surgery he had Sunday. Over the weekend, he fell at a community event and got two bone fractures. So he and his wife, Cheryl, won’t make it to Tampa. It’s a bummer because this is a great week to be part of the Badger State delegation. They’ve got vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan and RNC Chair Reince Priebus.

ANGRY MISSOURIANS: Several delegates from Missouri expressed frustration about the heavy-handed push by Romney and national Republicans to boot Todd Akin from their state’s Senate race. In interviews, they pushed back against the notion that his remarks on “legitimate rape” last week were a death blow to his Senate candidacy. “I really wish they had been a little more circumspect and had given him the courtesy of letting him explain and apologize,” said Beverly Martin of Fulton, Mo. “As I told my friend, Democrats don’t eat their own.” Manu Raju: http://politi.co/Ny531M.

THE BEST JOB IN POLITICAL REPORTING THIS WEEK? The Romney traveling press has been camped out in Boston since Saturday afternoon. Sure, the small contingency of reporters are missing all the parties in Tampa and would rather be where the news is, but three nights in the same hotel (the W, which is only blocks from Boston Common and Chinatown) is virtually unheard of for the small group of reporters and embeds that just last week traveled more than 6,400 miles to nine states. Romney has spent the weekend practicing his speech in Wolfeboro with just the protective pool in tow, leaving the traveling press to read the dispatches and actually have time to find a Laundromat. Oh, and the weather is a breezy 82 degrees and the sun has been shinning all weekend.

ROMNEY TAKES THE EDGE: Gallup’s tracking poll, which updates daily at 1 p.m., shows Romney leading Barack Obama 47 percent to 46 percent. The one-point margin is well within the margin of error. Remember, though, that since 1952 the candidate ahead in the final poll before the first convention has won 12 of 15 times. A poll released Monday by CNN shows Obama leading Romney by four in Florida, 50 to 46. In North Carolina, which hosts the Democratic convention, Romney edges out Obama 48 to 47. http://bit.ly/PMEsjN

A HELPING HAND: Unlike Obama, who has drawn complaints for being stingy with his campaign cash, Romney is helping GOP congressional allies. A Romney fundraising committee directed at least $3 million last month to help the National Republican Congressional Committee and the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Ken Vogel has more on how to make friends: http://politi.co/NsGc5z.

PLAYBOOK is covering the conventions jointly with its sibling, MORNING SCORE, written by James Hohmann, who will co-author Playbook and Playbook PM in Tampa and Charlotte. As part of POLITICO's convention partnership with the dominant Tampa Bay Times (né, the St. Pete Times), Playbook PM will run as a column in the print edition.

** A message from the National Association of Manufacturers: We are the voice for 12 million men and women who make things in America. U.S. manufacturing supports one in six private sector jobs. Manufacturing means jobs! Visit http://manufacturingworks.nam.org to make your voice heard. **

SPOTTED:

--JOHN OLIVER and AL MADRIGAL, from Comedy Central’s Daily Show with Jon Stewart, interviewing Texas delegates on the floor of the Forum.

--JON VOIGHT, the “Midnight Cowboy” actor, introducing Romney’s son Tagg at the Virginia delegation breakfast Monday. He got swarmed later in the day as he walked around radio row. Photo: http://bit.ly/OpOj0V.

-- PEGGY NOONAN, the Ronald Reagan speechwriter who now writes a column for the Wall Street Journal, chatting with adoring delegates on a shuttle bus to the convention center. One woman said her mother put Noonan’s book on her bed to read because she was so impressed by it, but she’s been too busy working on a campaign. Now that she’s met the author, she volunteered to Noonan, she’ll definitely read it.

-- KIM REYNOLDS, the Iowa lieutenant governor, walking through the convention hall. She’s secretary of the convention so she’ll lead the roll call vote to nominate Romney.

-- RISING STARS: Two Republicans to keep an eye on, Alabama Speaker Mike Hubbard and Florida Speaker-designate Will Weatherford, lunched with a small group of reporters today and discussed the politics in their state and the presidential election. The get-together was organized by GOP strategist Phil Musser, the former executive director of the Republican Governors Association.

-- A PAUL SUPPORTERS FROM GERMANY: Channing Jones, 46, flew from Dusseldorf to see Ron Paul in person. He connected with two other Paul supporters from Switzerland, and the trio spent a few hours carrying Paul signs outside the convention’s security perimeter.

QUOTED—

ON STAYING BEHIND – Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is not coming to the convention: “Today is the last day to evacuate…the last day to get supplies…weather will deteriorate Tues & folks need to stay safe,” he tweeted.

ON ROMNEY’S CHALLENGE – former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, at a Resurgent Republic discussion about the state of the race: “A wealthy plutocrat married to a known equestrian” is how he thinks Democrats have branded the former Massachusetts governor. He thinks the convention can fix this.

IN A PARALLEL UNIVERSE – former presidential candidate HERMAN CAIN, on CBS: "If everyone had competed fairly and honestly, I'd probably be the nominee being nominated this week.”

WORST METAPHOR OF THE DAY -- Rep. DARRELL ISSA (R-Calif.), speaking to the California delegation’s breakfast: “I think what you have to remember is Republicans are going to take Washington by storm on January 20th of next year, so if this is the first storm of Republicans taking control of our country again, making America competitive again, I'm fine with that. I don't care if we get blown in by a hurricane or a tornado, ultimately there's going to be an earthquake in Washington next January.”

LIGHTER CLICK—Engage, a Republican media firm in DC, developed a Facebook application on the Trendsetter social data platform that gives people a “Political Insider Score” from 1 to 100 based on your Facebook activity. Find yours: http://bit.ly/SJhtdS.

POLITICO CONVENTION BLACK PASSES, the hottest tickets in Tampa and Charlotte, which grant all access to our events and shows at the POLITICO Hub (400 North Ashley Dr.) have been picked up by the following insiders: Jonathan Collegio, Rick Hohlt, Chris Isham, David Jackson, Joe Johnston, Jonathan Karl, Michael Kehs, Chris Licht and Charlie Rose.

**A message from the National Association of Manufacturers: We are the voice for 12 million men and women who make things in America. U.S. manufacturing produces $1.8 trillion in economic value each year and alone would be the 9th largest economy in the world. Manufacturing means jobs, and our economy depends on it! Visit http://manufacturingworks.nam.org to make your voice heard. **

About The Author

James Hohmann is a reporter for POLITICO Pro.

He covered the 2012 presidential campaign from start to finish, authoring the daily Morning Score tipsheet for nearly two years as he reported from 23 states over the course of the primaries and general election. Through the fall, he traveled with Mitt Romney.

Hohmann spent 2010 chronicling the Republican Party’s drive to win control of the U.S. House of Representatives.

He arrived from The Washington Post at the end of 2009. Previously he wrote for the Los Angeles Times Washington bureau, the Dallas Morning News and The San Jose Mercury News.

An honors graduate of Stanford University, Hohmann studied American political history. He served as editor-in-chief of The Stanford Daily and wrote an award-winning thesis about the 1976 Republican primaries and the political ascendancy of Ronald Reagan.